Ice Age Fossils on Permanent Display at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science

Ice Age Fossils on Permanent Display at the Denver
Museum of Nature & Science

Popular NOVA Special Rebroadcasting on Rocky Mountain
PBS

DENVER - May 10, 2012- Fossils from the
historic Ice Age discovery near Snowmass Village, Colorado, are now
on display at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science.
Located in the Prehistoric Journey exhibition, the new exhibit
showcases 10 fossils from the Museum's largest-ever fossil
excavation project at Ziegler Reservoir. During the seven-week
endeavor, which concluded in July 2011, Museum crews pulled 5,400
bones from the site. Research and preservation are now
underway. In addition to information about Ice Age ecosystems
and discoveries, Museum visitors can get an up close look at these
fossils:

Neck vertebra

Metacarpal (lower leg bone)

American mastodon tusk

Tiger salamander bones

American mastodon vertebra

Partial mastodon jaw

Partial mammoth jaw

Bison skull

Fir tree knot

Jefferson's ground sloth claw

Additionally, visitors can continue to watch as fossils from the
site are prepared by staff and volunteers in the Schlessman Family
Laboratory of Earth Sciences, located across from the exhibit, near
the exit of Prehistoric Journey.

NOVASpecial Rebroadcast on Rocky Mountain PBS - June 6,
7 p.m.

"Ice Age Death Trap," a one‐hour NOVA‐National Geographic
program about the fossil find, premiered on Rocky Mountain PBS on
February 1 and was seen by more than 6 million viewers. The
program will be rebroadcast on June 6 at 7 p.m. during Rocky
Mountain PBS's annual pledge drive. During live breaks in the
broadcast, Museum scientists Kirk Johnson and Ian Miller, along
with Museum President and CEO George Sparks, will discuss the
discovery.

Digging Snowmastodon: Discovering an Ice Age World in
the Colorado Rockies

The book coauthored by Museum scientists Kirk Johnson and Ian
Miller that chronicles the discovery and exploration of the Ice Age
fossil find is available for purchase in the Museum shop for
$20. Proceeds from book sales support the Museum and ongoing
Snowmastodon Project®research.

In October 2010, a bulldozer operator working near a Colorado
ski area uncovered the tusk of a young female mammoth. Over the
next 10 months, the Denver Museum of Nature & Science conducted
its largest‐ever fossil excavation, yielding a treasure trove of
well‐preserved Ice Age fossils. Museum crews uncovered 5,000 bones
of 41 kinds of Ice Age animals, including mammoths, mastodons,
ground sloths, camels, deer, horses, and giant bison. The preserved
series of Ice Age fossil ecosystems is one of the most significant
fossil discoveries ever made in Colorado. This discovery at Ziegler
Reservoir near Snowmass Village will change forever our
understanding of alpine life in the Ice Age. To learn more, visit
www.dmns.org/science/the‐snowmastodon‐project.

About the Denver Museum of Nature &
Science

The Denver Museum of Nature & Science is the Rocky Mountain
Region's leading resource for informal science education. A variety
of engaging exhibits, discussions, and activities help Museum
visitors celebrate and understand the natural wonders of Colorado,
Earth, and the universe. The Museum is located at 2001 Colorado
Blvd., Denver, CO, 80205. To learn more about the Museum, check www.dmns.org, or call 303‐370‐6000.

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Many of the Museum's educational programs and exhibits are made
possible in part by generous funding from the citizens of the
seven‐county metro area through the Scientific & Cultural
Facilities District.